Winters can get bitterly cold in Maine, which means possibly dealing with frozen pipes in your home. Frozen plumbing will not only leave you without the use of your kitchen and bathroom sinks, but it could also do hundreds or thousands of dollars’ worth of damage if a pipe bursts. Fortunately, there’s plenty that you can do to keep your pipes from freezing or bursting this winter.
Know When Pipes Can Freeze
Water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, but it usually needs to get colder than that for the water in your pipes to freeze. Your plumbing provides just enough protection from the cold to keep water flowing most of the time. Still, water in pipes can and does freeze when it gets cold enough, so look for signs of frozen pipes when temperatures drop below 20 degrees. These signs include:
- Slow running water
- Faucets and spigots that stop working
- Slow drains
- Bad smells coming from your drains
- Strange sounds when you try to use your faucets
- Frost on exposed pipes
- Bulging pipes
Insulate Exposed Plumbing
Exposed pipes in your basement, crawlspace, and garage are the most likely to freeze. These areas usually have little in the way of insulation or heat, but you can mitigate that by wrapping exposed pipes in pipe insulation. You can find pipe insulation at most hardware stores, but some old blankets or towels can sometimes do in a pinch.
Open Your Kitchen and Cabinet Doors
If you have cabinets underneath your kitchen and bathroom sinks, keep them open when it gets cold outside. This exposes the plumbing underneath them to the warm air circulating through your house.
Turn Your Faucets on to a Trickle
Running water is less likely to freeze, so open your faucets until a trickle of water is coming out. This shouldn’t be enough to increase your water bill too high, but it could keep your pipes from freezing. It also helps alleviate some of the pressure in your plumbing, which can build up when your pipes freeze.
Don’t Turn Off Your Heat
While it may be tempting to turn down your thermostat to save a few dollars, you do not want to do this during a cold snap. Keep your thermostat set at the same temperature throughout the day and night, especially when it gets cold outside. You can lower it if you’re going to be away from home for a while, but never go lower than 55 degrees Fahrenheit. You won’t be around to notice how cold that is, but it’s still warm enough to keep your pipes from freezing while you’re gone.
Update Your Insulation
If your home’s insulation is more than a couple of decades old, consider having it updated. Insulation keeps warm air in and cold air out, and it goes a long way towards keeping your home at a comfortable temperature. It will also help keep your pipes from freezing, so take a look at your insulation if your home feels colder than usual.
What to Do if Your Pipes Freeze
Despite all of your best efforts, you may still have to deal with one or two frozen pipes in the winter. If your pipes freeze, find your home’s main water shutoff valve and turn off the water immediately. Frozen pipes can leak or burst very easily, and you don’t want to deal with a flooded basement when everything thaws.
Next, try to find the frozen pipe. If it’s an exposed pipe, you should be able to see some frost on it. You may also be able to thaw the pipe yourself if this is the case. Gently apply heat with electric space heaters, hair dryers, electric heating pads, or towels soaked in hot water. Open any faucets that are connected to the frozen pipes to relieve pressure and get water moving again once it starts to melt.
Once you’re reasonably sure that you’ve thawed out the pipe, slowly turn on the water again and check for leaks. If there are any, turn off the water again and call a plumber for help.
Call Dog House for Assistance
If you have a frozen pipe that you can’t thaw on your own, Dog House will be happy to assist you. We are a heating and cooling company located in Brunswick, ME, and we are familiar with how a cold Maine winter can affect a home’s plumbing. We have served Brunswick and the surrounding area since 2010, and we offer a range of plumbing services as well as heating and cooling services.
For more information about the services we offer or to schedule service for your home, call Dog House today.
